fading in, fading out
by be a riot
Summary: What if you had a timer and when you were about to meet your soul mate it started counting down and when time ran out, that was it. You had your soul mate. You found your destiny. But what if your destiny isn't exactly how you imagined it would be? (AustinxAlly.) [Romance. Supernatural. Fantasy.]
1. Chapter 1

**This new fic has been on my mind for like a million years and I'm finally just going to write it out. This took me four days of planning, writing, planning, editing, writing, planning, writing. So, I hope it's worth the read. **

**And yes, it was inspired by a couple tumblr posts that talk about the countdown to when you meet your soul mate. But! It was also inspired by Ellie Goulding's new song "Love Me Like You Do" and unholy hell is that song my jam. **

**Anyway,**

**The shitty summary: **

_**What if you had a timer and when you were about to meet your soul mate it started counting down and when time ran out, that was it. You had your soul mate. You found your destiny**_

_**Legend says, There is a countdown until you meet your soul mate. Markings written in numbers that appear on your left palm just before you and your soul mate will come to finally meet. The countdown begins exactly twenty four hours before you find each other and when you do, the countdown will stop and you will have found your other half. Your soul mate.**_

_**Ally Dawson's life has finally come together; Experiencing her first year at college and having just moved in with her oh-so-amazing boyfriend, she finally has everything she ever wanted. Until markings appear on her left palm and only disappear with the meeting of a reckless blonde haired boy, whom, she quickly learns, is her soul mate. The one she's supposedly dreamed about her entire life. The one the universe has specifically designed her to be with. The one who is supposed to be her other half. The one who should just not be him. The one who flips her life completely upside down.**_

**So, that was the terrible the plot-ish thing? I hate summaries. They should be outlawed. I know the whole good girl-bad boy thing is so overrated, but it's just what this has come to. Read the chapter and determine if it sucks or not ? ? **

**PROLOGUE**

_**\- Ally - **_

Her shampoo smelled like bananas.

The bathroom was the only place where she could really go to truly think about everything, to think about her life. Here's what she came up with:

1) Today was Valentine's Day. Her birthday. She's 19.

_Deep breath. Continue lathering shampoo._

2) She aced her essay with flying colors. She's majoring in English at the College. She's going to be a teacher. Gavin reminded her that if anyone was capable of acing that essay, it would be her.

_Smile. Time to rinse._

3) If she was sad, it had to be in a place where she no longer felt it, because for the first time in a while, she was _happy_.

_Conditioner._

4) Gavin brought up marriage the other night. She told him she wasn't ready. He said he respected that. After all, they were hardly adults yet, but she couldn't say that the thought of him on one knee didn't make her stomach flip excitedly.

_Rinse. Rinse. Rinse._

5) She missed her mom, but it's been six years, she could finally miss her mom with a smile. Still hurt though.

_Relax. There's no hurry._

6) There was something missing. Something she wanted that she hadn't yet gotten. She didn't know what it was.

_Turn off the water._

Ally ran her fingers along her smooth, sopping hair. She twisted her long mane, ridding it of the excess water and listening to the sound of it slop at her feet.

The bathroom fan blaring noisily almost covered the sound of her boyfriend humming in the kitchen nearby. Her lips curved upwards at the corners.

Her arm extended behind the shower curtain and grabbed onto the towel that was awaiting her on the toilet seat. The steam wasn't enough to keep her warm as goose bumps gathered on her skin while she dried herself.

She was in mid towel wrap when something red caught her eye. With the opposite hand, she held the towel in place and lifted her left palm. It was red raw from the heat of the water, but there was no denying an abnormality about the little flaws that had made it to her skin.

Confusion swept along her flushed face and her lips pouted into something relatively close to a frown. She rubbed at the piece of flesh. She hadn't recalled hurting her hand although recollected the vague memory of how tender the skin had gotten over the last couple of days.

Using her towel, Ally rubbed over the small flaw. It wasn't swollen, but her flesh looked peeled in that area. She tried rubbing it again with her finger tips. Nothing. In fact, it only seemed to stand out more. She shook her head and pushed it to the back of her mind as she went back to the simple task of getting out of the shower.

She pretended not to notice that the flaws looked a lot like the numbers: _24:00_.

_**\- Austin -**_

Smoke set off the fire alarm.

It was so typical for him to not acknowledge it. It was his best friend that turned the corner sharply and swatted at the damn thing while muttering incoherent curse words under his breath.

Sleep kept Dez's mind groggy. He made the official plan that he would uninstall the smoke detectors before Austin's early morning smoking habits could turn their friendship into a rivalry.

"It's Valentine's Day, _bestie_." Austin chortled. He only received a hard stare.

"We're leaving." Austin said, his cigarette bobbing at the corner of his lip. He put down the newspaper in his hands and turned it towards Dez.

_**BANDITS IN DALLAS?**_

The words were capitalized in bold. Dez lifted the paper and his eyes scanned the article, catching a few words here and there.

"I guess we overstayed our welcome." Austin said, wryly and lifted his arms above his head, stretching them. He took the cigarette out of his mouth and plunged it into the ash tray in front of him, watching it die.

"Two days, Austin. We were here for _two days_." Dez vocalized. "You didn't have to kill that girl."

A shrug lifted Austin's shoulders. "I had an extra bullet. Besides, she was high with a knife. Somebody was gonna die and, guaranteed, it wasn't gonna be me."

Dez shook his head, waving his hand dismissively. He turned around and headed for his bed again. A hangover cursed his skull. He collapsed himself back into bed and curled beneath his covers. He wanted so bad to be drunk again.

Austin shook his head and lifted the newspaper again as he read through the article, but he's suddenly distracted by welts he'd not yet seen on his palm. He drops the paper and stretches his palm open, eyeing the raw flesh. He hadn't recalled nicking himself with his knife and even if he had, he was sure he'd never be able to make a cut so clean.

Confused, Austin's chair scrapes against the hard flooring as he stands up. He dives his hands under the tap water and scrubs at his palms, trying to rid himself of the flaw. Strangely, it doesn't burn or ache. He doesn't even feel it. He rubs at it repeatedly, but it only makes the marks darken.

He blinks at it numbly. _24:00_.

"What in the hell..." he mutters, watching the tap water run over it.

"Aus," grumbles Dez, trudging back into the kitchen.

Austin immediately clasps his hands together tightly and looks over his shoulder to his best friend. "Hm?" He saw the shape his best friend was in. "Advil's in the cupboard." He turned away and peeked at his hand again. He hadn't imagined it. The marks were still there.

They were numbers.

Numbers for what?

**CHAPTER ONE**

The strange flaw on Ally's left palm had never faded, but she had learned to ignore it only speculating it was a birthmark that had only become visible as of a month ago. Though, Ally couldn't say it wasn't creepy that it had only made an appearance on her nineteenth birthday. Gavin joshed about the fact when she'd mentioned it.

Ally had caught herself gazing down at the abnormality and often traced her finger over it. It felt rigid and sometimes curiosity bubbled in her gut. Gavin had agreed that it was rather intriguing that the mark had appeared in the array of numbers. A clock. It never changed; only reading out the same numbers each day: a two, four, and double zeroes.

Austin, on the other hand, was more experimental.

Dumb enough to scrape at the mark with his pocket knife and watch blood drool from his palm, but smart enough to know that it was no ordinary mark and he was damn sure that it wasn't a scar or a birthmark. He would have seen it before.

And what birthmark heals over and returns to its natural form after you cut it open five times?

City to city; crime by crime, the mark had only darkened on his palm but never changed form. Not only had the mark caught him off guard, but it had taken over his thoughts. Rubbing at it with his thumb when he sank deep into his thoughts, memorizing its rough edges in the form of those familiar four numbers.

Austin had kept quiet about the mark for the month, but as its reddened, he wondered about bringing it up to Dez, but he knew Dez well enough to decide not to bring it up.

It was when cops had chased Austin and Dez right out of Missouri that heading straight to Miami became an official plan. They needed to hide themselves in a big city, one that had a decently high crime rate, and neither one of them had explored Miami before.

Crossing into Florida's borders had never felt so welcoming. Dez had already arranged plans for he and Austin to stay with an old friend. Miami was too promising to not want to stay.

"New beginnings?" Dez voiced as they sped across the city border and flew passed Miami's welcoming sign.

A crooked smirk curled on the corner of Austin's lips. "Something like that."

His wrist rested on the steering wheel, his hand dangling limply whilst he balanced his pride on the tip of his tongue. As he breathed in deeply, he hadn't noticed one thing:

The mark had changed.

_23:59._

Ally had her books scattered around her on a table. She peered into textbooks and copied notes into a notepad. Her nose buried itself into her text books, eyes only looking away to write a few more notes and then she's back to her studies. Her life was floating so delicately on cloud nine that studying felt so breezy, so calming.

The loud roar of a 1965, black Comet had a pretentious way of spitting gravel from beneath its wheels as it passed the coffee shop.

Ally glances towards the window, nearly catching the vehicle and the prideful yellow-haired boy inside, and it's funny how she just misses it. The car is gone in the blink of an eye, headed down the road away from her.

"Sick car." Gavin is reeling, only daydreaming about owning such an antique. He shakes his head and his smile is warm on his girlfriend. "Chai Tea Latte." He holds out the drink.

"Gavin, I-"

She stops.

It's her palm.

She blinks warily at it, lips parted slightly before they close and curl into the shape of an 'O'. She's spiraling with confusion and surprise.

The mark. It's changed. It's different.

_23:59._

"Als, you alright?" Gavin frowns down at her, pale eyes knitting concern.

"Yeah, I just..." Ally shakes her head vigorously. "Nothing. Nothing." She couldn't even think of a lie. Her mind felt suddenly foggy.

Gavin stared at her with arched eye brows. "Maybe you should take a break."

"Yeah." Ally nodded. "Take a seat. Maybe I just need...a moment, or something."

Her eyes look back to her hand.

_23:58_

She swallows hard.

**x**

"Let me see it!"

Before Ally could think about protesting, her best friend snatched her hand and pried her fingers wide. Her lips gapped open.

_08:03_

Ally chewed on her bottom lip with her front teeth, casting her best friend a troubled glance.

Trish blinked at the numbers written there. Her eye brows furrowed together as she released Ally's hand. "I thought you said it was a birthmark." She strictly remembered when Ally had showed her the steady _24:00_ that had been its original formation.

"It is! ...Or _was_." Ally shook her head. "I don't know. It..It keeps changing. Ever since yesterday at the coffee shop."

"It looks like a clock." Trish murmured.

Ally looked at her, eyes wider, blinked twice. "Yeah." she muttered, fisting her palm.

"Does Gavin know?" Trish wondered.

Ally opened her palm and stared openly at it again. She nodded her head. "Yeah, he knows."

"Well, what did he say?" Trish pressed.

Ally shrugged, shaking her head. "Nothing really. He's just as confused as I am."

Ally watched the skin patch up quickly before a new mark painlessly cut through her skin.

_08:02_

Ally gulped. She flashed Trish her palm once more.

Trish's eyes got rounder and she looked at Ally.

"There has to be a reason that this is happening. " Trish said, stumbling on the words.

"What if I'm dying?" Ally blurted, "Maybe this is some sort of cosmic sign for the time I have left!"

Trish rolled her eyes and swatted her best friend. "Ally, stop being so dramatic. You're not dying!"

But suddenly, a frown creased onto Trish's face. _Time I have left. Time. Time. Time._

"Wait," Trish halted, "You said it keeps changing?"

Ally nodded slowly. "Yeah. Frequently, actually. I mean, I just take my eyes off of it for a minute and it's like it...changes. I don't know."

Ally looked at her palm and sighed. She showed Trish her palm again. _08:01_

"A countdown." Trish thought aloud.

"What?" Ally quirked a brow.

"You're onto something, Ally." Trish said. "Think about it, the numbers change by the minute and it looks like a clock, the numbers are getting smaller." Her eyes were wide as she waited for Ally to silently fill in the blanks.

A laugh bubbled out Ally's throat. "A countdown? Trish, I was exaggerating. I'm not going to die. I promise."

"No, no." Trish shook her head. "Of course you're not, I know that, but I just...I don't know, maybe this is just the philosophy major in me, but what if it is a countdown? Not to some stupid death, but to something else?"

Ally stared at Trish. A silence stilled the air for a couple beats. Ally looked down at her hand again.

_08:00_

She slowly looked up at Trish, but then shook her head. "Trish, I think we both could use some sleep."

**x**

Austin picked at his palm with his pocket knife, his feet kicked up onto the table.

_07: 58_

"Look, man, I'm sure making yourself bleed isn't helping." Elliot said, pushing his shaggy hair away from his eyes.

"It's counting down. The damn thing is _counting down_." Austin narrowed his gaze at Elliot. "I'm pretty sure birthmarks don't count down."

Dez slid over a bottle of Gin to Austin who caught it steadily, but never took a drink from it.

"Whatever the thing is, we'll figure it out. Just please don't tell me you're flipping out over a damn cut." Dez said, logically.

"I'm not." Austin said, taking his eyes off of the _cut_ and grabbing a bandana and bandaging his hand with it. He knotted it tightly and cracked open the Gin with his knife. He let the drink refresh him, but his mind was still scattered.

"Collins," Dez said, "Get the boy a cigarette, would you?"

Elliot tugged a box out of his pocket and slapped it on the table in front of Austin, who grabbed the package greedily and swiped a lighter from his pocket. With a couple clicks, a flame lit and Austin inhaled deeply.

Austin leaned his head back as he did so. He heard the hum of Dez and Elliot's voices twist together until it was muffled to his ears by the noise of his own thoughts. He tugged on the knot of the bandana, feeling too skeptical to leave it alone. Smoke puffed through his lips, not even the luck of cigarettes could stable his curiosity and stress.

His thoughts fell apart when Elliot slapped a palm on his shoulder and patted him briefly. He dismissed himself from the dining area. Austin reached for his drink and dunked the alcoholic contents back, ignoring the burn in his throat from such a swift and forceful movement.

Dez had his pale eyes narrowed on his friend. Not much bothered Austin, he wondered why this did so much. _A silly cut. It's a silly cut_. He thought to himself, but the stern fact wavered as he watched Austin peel back the bandana again and inhaled sharply through his nostrils, a troubled look filmed over his eyes before Austin managed to detach the feeling quickly. His dark eyes going back to its usual flat, cold look.

Austin's eyes caught Dez's. The corner of his mouth quirked upwards for a split second before he got up from the chair, leaving Dez alone at the table. His footsteps were loud on the stairwell.

Austin peaked at the mark again.

_07: 49_

He could only think one thing:

_What the hell is going on?_

**x**

**So, I had writers block when I wrote this and if any of you know what that's like you'll know how much of a **_**pain**_** it is to write. But I did my best for it to come out and although it wasn't quite how I imagined the first chapter would go, it'll do. **

**I've done enormous planning for this one, the most planning I've ever done for any story so I hope that maybe it'll catch your attention or I'll be able to continue it. I'll warn you that I did miss two full weeks of school due to mental health circumstances and so I've been piled into a truckload of schoolwork so my updating schedule is all messed up and as you've noticed, I had a habit of posting quite regularly and then lately it's been like BLAH! That has everything to do with school and the insane amount of work, so I apologize. Maybe by the time it's summer, I'll be able to have regular updates again. Who knows? **

**Anyway, thanks for everything: Your love, support, and reviews! **


	2. Chapter 2

Her hands trembled a bit.

Gavin reached forward and turned down the radio. He glanced towards the backseat of his car where the door never opened. He arched an eye brow and looked to Ally again. Her posture was upright and stuff.

"No Trish?" Gavin questioned.

Forcing a smile, Ally shook her head. "No. She said she had some studying."

"Studying?" Gavin echoed as Ally nodded her head. "Isn't she the one that convinced us to go to this stupid bonfire?"

"Yeah." Ally's answer was short and simple, distracted even.

Gavin looked at her, suddenly just noticing the tremor in her hands, the shiver that rose the hairs on her arms, and her stare stuck on the dashboard. He reached over and grabbed her hand, giving it a small squeeze.

"What's the matter?" he crooned, softly.

His voice was enough to relax her. Ally finally looked at him and gave him small but genuine smile. She squeezed his hand back.

"I'm fine." she assured him, her tongue swollen from the lie.

"You...don't want to talk about it." he exhaled, looking forward. Ally remained silent. With the hand that was still on the wheel, he drummed his finger tips in thought.

"Trish thinks it means something." Ally finally said.

Ally pulled her hand out of his grasp and spread her fingers. The numbers on her palm were almost hidden in the dark, but Gavin still managed to see _01:15 _ peeled so smoothly there.

"And do you?" he looked at her.

"No. Of course not. That's ridiculous, Gavin. I just...I don't know why it keeps changing." Ally told him.

He was quiet for a brief moment. "Maybe Trish is right then. Maybe it does mean something."

"Gavin," Ally looked at him with unconvinced eyes, "Don't be silly."

"Hey, I'm just being opened." he replied, defensively. "You know what? Let's forget about it for tonight. It's your first college bonfire and I'm going to show you the art of having fun."

The corners of Ally's lips curved into a smile. "Okay." she said.

And then the wheels of Gavin's Range Rover spun into a smooth drive, the tail lights fading into the distance of the moonlit night.

**x**

"You know," a voice countered from behind him, "If you stare at it, you'll burn a hole through your hand."

Austin turned just as Elliot gave him a wry grin and shoved a solo cup into his hand.

"Drink, buddy. This is a college party." Elliot grinned from ear to ear.

"I thought college parties were supposed to be cool. Not this dump." The solo cup made it to Austin's lips and he forced the drink down his throat before grimacing and taking a long look into his cup. "And what the hell is this? It tastes washed up."

Elliot shrugged. "Don't ask me. I just drink it, because it's free."

"You're a beggar." Austin muttered.

The large fire was in the distance, the smoke choking the starry sky. Austin and Elliot were lounging on the docks, the warm breeze of the water tickling their skin. Austin watched the college kids run around the lot, laughing and shouting to one another. He had his eyes on a cute blonde, but of course, she was scooped into the arms of a body builder type shortly after Austin almost had the will to go over and spark a fire within her.

He reached into his pocket and it didn't take long for him to have a cigarette between his lips and smoke drooling from his mouth. That was when he realized Elliot was talking to him.

"...something so great."

"What?" Austin looked at him.

Annoyance filled Elliot's gaze. "Too busy staring down Barbie over there, huh?" he muttered, rolling his eyes. "Don't bother with any of these girls. Most of them are too proud. Wouldn't be worth it."

"And how would you know?" Austin asked.

"Uh, Because I've already banged half of them in my car." Elliot snickered while Austin only shook his head.

A silence followed soon after.

"Why'd you guys come to Miami, anyways?" Elliot wondered, stealing himself a cigarette from his own pocket.

"Left Dallas. Then the cops chased us out of Missouri." Austin said, he stole a swift peak at his hand. He looked away again. "Miami is filled with criminals, yeah? Why not blend in."

Before Elliot could reply, a lanky boy had stood between the two of them. He held up three beers.

"I grabbed the real stuff." Dez's red hair had fallen into his eyes, but still Austin saw the eagerness there.

He grinned and grabbed the beer. The lids had already been snapped off and simultaneously, the three boys gulped the drink, their Adam's apples bobbing. Austin quickly glanced to his hand and did his best not to approach the numbers with concern.

_00:59_

**x**

Trish wasn't an over-analyzer.

But there was something about the numbers inscribed on Ally's palm that had her lurking through her mother's study instead of being at the bonfire.

She exhaled, slamming yet another thick book shut and sliding it back into its correct spot on the dusty shelves. Her fingers glided along the spine of the books until her hand stopped on one in particular. It was her favourite: _Greek Mythology._

She pulled on its spiny hardcover back with a grunt and it came slipping out. She held the red book in her hands and grimaced at the dust bunnies gathered on its front cover. She was a little bit of a clean freak; the way her knuckles brushed away the dirt had her nearly gagging.

She flipped through the first couple of pages and landed on the table of contents. Her eyes casually scanned over every title: _Ancient Greece...Constellations...Gods... Horoscopes...Soul Mates._

Her eyes stopped there. Her lip quirked upwards. Her mother had been completely fascinated by Greek Mythology and Trish recalled the nights where she would be lulled to sleep by her mother's storytelling about soul mates. Her mother legitimately believed in them. Her Dad had, too.

Before she had time to dwell in the past, Trish suddenly found herself flipping to the correct page. Her eyes fell upon all kinds of facts and soon lost herself in the interesting information. Her eyes suddenly came to a halt.

_**THE MARKINGS**_

She shifted her eyes for a moment, her fingers tapping on the page as she pondered whether she should continue reading or not. Perhaps, she was getting too imaginative.

She decided to read it anyways.

_Every soul mate is given a clock in sync with one another. The clock is hidden beneath the flesh of both mates. As the soul mate is drawing closer, the mark of the clock will appear on the palm of each mates hand. When the soul mate is near, approximately twenty four hours, both clocks will begin their countdown. Fate will draw the two mates together..._

**x**

"You said, you'd have fun." Gavin sang, waving a drink in front of his girlfriend.

Ally forced a smile. "I am having fun. I'm with you."

Gavin cracked a smile. "I mean real fun. Drink!"

"I'm not in the mood for it, Gavin. Besides, your vision of fun is getting us drunk so Trish will have to lug our asses into bed." Ally said as he chuckled.

"She's too willing sometimes." Gavin grinned.

"And you're too stupid sometimes!"

"Hey, now, don't be mean." Gavin said, his hands held high in mock-surrender.

Ally giggled. Gavin tilted his head back and took a gulp of his drink. Ally glanced down to her palms.

_00:01_

She swallowed hard.

She looked back to Gavin and took a deep breath. "I'm going to use the restroom. Don't go anywhere, the last thing I need is to be pushing through crowds and find out that you're doing some lame drinking contest."

Still having the cup to his lips, Gavin gave her a thumbs up.

Ally turned and began walking.

**x**

_It is when the two soul mates find one another that the mark will finally disappear and The Connection will take place._

**x**

Austin frowned down at his hands.

_00:00_

"This is so jacked up." he grumbled and just as he turned the corner, he collided with a small body.

She stumbled backwards, but with the help of warm hands she caught her balance.

Her skin lit on fire - she almost checked if it were actually in flames and something that felt a lot like windy current wafted through her veins. He suddenly jumped back, blinking animatedly for a couple seconds as he shook out his hands. They were burning.

Struck by surprise, not by the collision but by the sensation drilling through her, Ally stood there for a moment. Her mind spun.

Feeling almost woozy from the strength of whatever passed through his veins, Austin shook his head and tugged some fingers through his hair.

That was when he remembered he'd collided into something, or someone.

Then she remembered it, too.

Both fought the aftermath of the weird sensation and found each other's eyes.

What happened next was totally weird:

She swore she felt a click. As if physical bone popped somewhere, but she didn't feel any pain. She did stagger a little, though. A flicker of something unrecognizable. Then euphoria. Her veins burned in a pretty way, the kind of feeling that not even the world's best writer could put to words.

He swore he felt a switch, like somebody turned the lights on in a stale basement. Then it happened to him, too: The flicker of something unrecognizable. Then something more powerful than normal elation. It felt like something in him had started melting - not organs but something greater within his depths.

Then, finally, something unique shifted between them. An electrical-like current whistling through him and into her. And suddenly, staring at her, and staring at him, was right. In a way that confused the both of them, because it was no ordinary 'right' feeling.

Neither had words. Their thoughts were sputtering.

Who knew how long they even stayed silent for? Neither of them had really kept count. These sensations swimming through them were more than distracting.

Then it was calm.

The rough sensations had fluttered to the ground, but something thick lay awake in them.

A light breeze of wind tugged on a strand of her hair. It caught his eye and he stared at it before bringing himself to look at her eyes. They were wide and big, and the kind of brown that looked smooth. Warm. Starry.

He finally remembered who he was again.

A smirk lifted his lips, "My bad."

She was reeling and shifty eyed.

"Yeah." Her voice came out in a croak.

He told himself to go, but his feet were not moving. Something kept his feet stuck to the ground, but he wasn't the only one. Ally suddenly remembered Gavin and knew she needed to get back to him, but something was not allowing her.

"You lost?" he queried.

"No." she shook her head.

"Oh. For a moment there, you looked distraught." he said.

She didn't know why, but she told him her name.

And he told her his name, too.

Then he walked away. And she watched him.

Still feeling slightly disoriented, Austin stumbled, his balance wasn't quite right. He stopped walking and shook his head. His throat felt dry and there was a throbbing in his chest. It wasn't his heart. It was something else. Something he couldn't put his finger on.

Ally began to wander around the lot, looking for Gavin but also not looking for Gavin. Her mind was elsewhere and that elsewhere had blonde hair and a bone-chilling gaze. She tried to breathe easy, but her lungs shook. Her veins were still tingling.

He looked at his hands.

She looked at hers.

And the marks were gone.

**x**

Trish's lips gapped open, jaw slacked. She slowly lifted her head, the book still opened wide in her hands.

"Oh. My. God."


	3. Chapter 3

She stood on the tips of her toes and slid a book into the top shelf.

Her hair was twisted in a loose braid and fell off her shoulder as she thumbed over the books. Even in her oxford heels she couldn't reach the top shelves without a small fight.

She twists and grabs a book off of the cart she was wheeling down the aisle and uses her index finger to glide along the vertebrae of each book until she stops. She squeezes the small book in her hand into a tight space. She grips the handle of the cart and pushes it forward down the aisle.

A door is slammed and Austin immediately swivels his attention to the sound. Seeing his red-haired friend, he exhales and leans his elbow on the door, his palm running along his hair.

Dez folds a newspaper into his lap and puts the bag of food on the ground next to his feet. He sets a bottle of rum in the console. Then he realized one thing: They weren't moving. He slowly cranes his head to eye his friend whose gaze was set forward again.

With a lifted eye brow, Dez follows his gaze to the wide library window. Inside that window was the clear view of empty study tables, aisles and aisles of books and then something in particular: a girl. Dez's confusion fades and he lets out an abrupt, "Ah."

Austin drummed his fingers along the wheel, vision set on the way she moved her legs when she walked and hypothesizing her height, the way she smelled, what she felt like. Something in him felt at peace with her and then something else was dying to have her, to hold her and be close to her.

Something pops next to his ear. He inhales sharply and drops his gaze from her. He looks over to Dez who has just lowered his snapping hand. His eyes are questioning as he glances back over to the girl inside the library and then looks to Austin.

"Who is she?" he queries, curiously.

Austin licked his lips. "I don't know."

Dez guffawed. "You don't know?"

"No, Dez, I really don't." Finally he'd shifted the gear into reverse.

Something uneasy settled in Austin's gut as he drove away: the fear that he wouldn't see her again.

Deciding to leave the subject alone, Dez asked, "How's the mark?"

"Gone." Austin replied.

Dez straightened. "It's gone? What do you mean it's gone?"

Austin turned a corner. "I mean, it ran out of time and then disappeared."

_Only after he met Ally._

Ally.

It was such an ordinary name, but he swore she was no ordinary girl. The current that flitted through him was still burning and somehow it had turned to yearning. Like he just had to have her. And sometimes, when he thought about it, the only other word that sprung to mind when he thought of her was: _mine._

Suddenly, he was slamming on his breaks.

Dez gripped the door and the elderly pedestrian in her walker scowled at the vehicle that nearly struck her, but her gaze moved right through Austin. He inhaled deeply and it was shaky. He leaned his head back against the seat.

Dez waited a couple beats before deciding to say the three words that he felt were most important in this moment."Hey, Austin?"

Breathing through his nostrils, Austin grumbled, "What?"

"What the fuck?"

Austin sighed. He pressed on the gas pedal when the elderly woman was out of the way. His grip on the wheel was tight and his knuckles discolored, out of the ordinary from his usual grip that was so loose Dez sometimes wondered if Austin was even holding the wheel at all.

Suddenly, he took a deep breath and pulled the car over. The gear was placed into park. Dez felt a little unnerved. Austin wasn't himself. And there is nothing about that statement that isn't horrifying on its own.

Austin's shaky hands dug around in his pocket for a cigarette. He closed his eyes as he took a long drag and rolled down the window. He opened his eyes to watch the smoke spew out.

"Dude?" Dez voiced, his voice calming and gentle, and even a little bit nervous.

"The girl in the library," Austin began as he stared forward, "Her name is Ally. Met her at the college party actually." His lips curved upwards wryly, but the smirk didn't last long.

Dez became smug. His laugh echoed in the car. "Oh, I see where this is going. You found _a girl_."

Austin looked at his best friend sharply. "No...No, no. You don't understand. It's not like that." Austin shook his head and when his best friend never dropped the smug smile, he said, "It gets worse."

"Alright," Dez grinned, reclining his seat and propping his feet up on the dashboard as he folded his arms. "I'm listening. Keep talking."

Austin took a deep breath. "I was worried about that damn mark, I couldn't get my mind off it, I wasn't looking where I was going and I bumped into her. She starts falling over, so I grab her, right? I grab her and the weirdest shit happens, I swear to God, the weirdest shit: Sparks. Everywhere. In my face. And a goddamn magnet in my goddamn chest."

"I never pictured you as such a romantic." Dez smirked. Austin tossed the cigarette out the window.

"I said it's not like that." Austin snapped. "Something switched, Dez, I fucking kid you not, something just fucking turned on - like a light switch. And not of the sorts that you're thinking." Austin glowered. "I mean, like, fucking robot-style turned on. I could...I don't fucking know... I felt her, okay? I felt what she was feeling, I...I _knew_ her without really knowing her. You following?"

There was a silence.

"So, you're a robot?"

"Fuck, Dez! No!" Austin howled. He sighed. "Then we left, right? I'm walking and my skin feels like it's on fire and my head is pounding. Then, I look at my hands. The mark. Gone. It _timed out_ when I ran into her and disappeared when I left."

Dez opened his mouth to speak, but Austin hurriedly continued, "Oh, but that's not the worst part of it all. The worst part is I'm walking and I realize something, I make an epiphany:" Pause. "I love her."

Austin exhaled, his head leaned back against the seat. He let out a groan and ran his hands over his face. "Like, I love her. I actually love her."

Dez straightened up in his seat, eyes growing wider than their normal size. This was it. He always knew it'd happen one day, he just hadn't expected it to happen so soon: His friend was a lunatic. He'd completely gone loco. "Austin, man..."

With an incredulous look, Austin questioned, "How the fuck do you love somebody you've never met before? How the fuck is that possible?" He shook his head. "This is no infatuation, Dez, I mean, I _love _her. There's no control over it! She could walk up to me and tell me to cut off my own hand and goddamn, I'd do it. And like, I want her. I _want_ her? _Need_ her?"

Dez cleared his throat and reached for the rum. "So, you're getting a little weird. Maybe you need a drink." Dez stabbed the tip of the knife under the lid and it came off with a pop.

Austin snatched the bottle and greedily drank the contents. He pried the drink away from his lips, but found it didn't help. His mind was still scattered from his latest epiphany.

"So, you're serious then?" Dez said, after a moment.

"Yes, I'm serious!" Austin growled.

Dez had heard of love at first sight, but he refused to believe it was real. Besides, love at first sight doesn't literally mean _love _at first sight. After everything Austin told him, he knew his friend wasn't just infatuated with her, he didn't just lust her, he genuinely believed he _loved_ her.

Dez could easily book his ass to a mental institution _or _he could believe him, his best friend.

For a reason he'll never ever know, he chose the latter.

The two stayed silent.

Dez reeling from what Austin told him and Austin reeling from Ally.

"It's the mark." Austin suddenly said, breaking the cool silence.

"What?" Dez arched his eye brows, stealing the rum from Austin and taking a gulp.

"The mark on my hand. I knew it wasn't normal. Maybe...Maybe it lead me to her. Maybe we're supposed to be together?"

It wasn't a statement, it was a question. A suggestion, even.

"So, coincidentally, you get this mark," Dez began as Austin nodded, "It doesn't start doing weird countdown shit until you get to Miami," Austin nodded again, "And then just as it times out...you meet this Abby-"

"-Ally."

"You meet _Ally_ and the mark has disappeared and you realize that you... love her?" Dez rose a brow.

Austin exhaled, "Yup." He snatched the rum back and drowned himself in it.

"Our lives just got a whole lot more complicated." Dez muttered while Austin nodded in agreement.

Because as crazy as it sounded, it somehow, weirdly, _made sense_ without making any sense at all.

**x**

"Let me get this straight," Gavin began, "You bumped into him, or he bumped into you, and the mark disappeared? Just gone? Poof?"

"Poof." Ally nodded.

Gavin had his back against the counter as he delved into deep thought.

"There's got to be more to this. It could've been mere coincidence." Gavin said, taking a seat at the table in front of her.

"W...Well," she stammered, her front teeth biting down onto her bottom lip.

She didn't want to tell him about the feelings that Austin had given her, but she needed to figure out what it was, why it happened. Besides, Gavin deserved to know. He could help her.

"What didn't you tell me, Ally?" he sighed.

"Um...Well...When I...When I met him, I...felt something. Something weird." Ally squeaked, her tongue a stuttering mess.

Gavin raised his eye brows. "Something weird?"

"Yeah, like-" she cut herself off, "I don't know, it was just weird!" Ally sat back in the chair and crossed her arms.

"What'd you feel?" Gavin questioned, curiosity ticking inside of him.

"It was physical...Sort of." she winced. "When he bumped into me, he grabbed me and...I-I felt like I knew him?" Ally furrowed her eye brows questioningly. "He seemed like...he knew me, too. I mean, we knew each other without really _knowing_ each other."

Gavin blinked twice. "I'm sorry, what?"

Ally sighed. "I don't know, Gavin! I've never seen him in my life, but when he bumped into me, it's like I felt him."

"Define felt." Gavin said, slowly.

There was no way Ally was going to explain to her boyfriend the elated feeling Austin had given her. The burning inside of her, the feeling of something squeezing inside her chest. It wasn't quite the conversation she pictured having with him.

"I felt like he..." Ally exhaled. She took a deep breath and quickly blurted, "I-felt-like-his-feelings-were-my-feelings-and-vice-versa!" Realizing he hadn't caught a word she'd said, she sighed and spoke slowly, "It was like we shared emotions, like...He felt everything I felt."

Gavin sighed. "Ally, you were drunk-"

"-I didn't get drunk until _after _I met him." Ally said, pointedly.

"Your mind is still foggy about the whole thing." Gavin said.

"I know what I felt, Gavin. It was like we were one person." Ally cringed as she said it.

"One person?" Gavin looked at her.

"In a weird way?" she grimaced. "I don't know what it was, but I left and...the mark had disappeared. And I...I think he had something to do with it. I mean, I've felt weird ever since, like I'm looking for something and I don't know what it is."

"Are you looking for him?" Gavin avoided her eyes.

Her eyes widened. "No! No, Gavin! It's not like that." Ally sighed. "This is why I didn't want to talk about it."

He sighed, "I'm sorry. But we have to do something about it. We have to figure it out."

"I know. I agree." Ally replied.

**x**

Ally sighed, stuffing her right hand into the back pockets of her jeans. "Um, Trish...It's me," she exhaled, "Again. If you get this, call me."

Click.

It was unusual for Trish to ignore her like this and specifically for no reason at all. Worry exuded her features. She hadn't seen her best friend for two days. What if something terrible happened? What if she's severely depressed? What if-

She met Déjà Vu as she suddenly collided into a hard body. It was warm and alarmed her when she suddenly wanted to grab on tightly to the stranger.

There was a pull in her chest. It was strong. Not nearly as traumatic as what happened at the bonfire, but it was close enough that her mind began spinning and sputtering all over again. She felt _him_ again. There was no need to check for shaggy hair or almond shaped eyes or the smirk. She already knew who it was.

"Sorry." Ally croaked, gulping.

She wasn't quite sure how to manage these feelings. They were unlike anything she's ever felt before - almost too strong for her to fathom them.

At least the current wasn't there this time, but all the burning, _the yearning_, in their bodies stopped. They were at peace.

"We have to stop running into each other like this." His lips curled.

He had a rocky persona. He was no Gavin. He lacked the sincerity and genuine kindness. He seemed cold and mysterious. In a weird way, he made her feel like she was drowning. His presence both scared her and excited her.

She managed to strangle out a laugh. Her cheeks felt warm. "Yeah. Sorry."

"My bad." he replied, eyes studying her.

Her eyes met his for a millisecond as she recalled him saying that before. She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and looked away from his intimidating stare. She wasn't very good at eye contact, especially with the strangers who make her feel like she's about to jump from a fifty foot cliff.

"Um, I should be going." Ally said, gently.

He didn't know what tempted him to ask, but suddenly he blurted, "Is everything okay?"

Her eyes grew in size, eyelashes batting mechanically. There was a quivering lump in her throat. She nodded her head. "Yeah."

Why was she so squeaky?

"I just...thought you looked worried." _Or felt worried._

She glanced down to the phone in her hand, then looked back to him. "Oh. Well, it's just my friend. She hasn't talked to me in a couple of days and I am kind of worried about her." She suddenly felt embarrassed.

The whole thing was messed up, Austin decided. He could feel her worry like a knife prodding his ribcage open and her embarrassment echoed inside the temple of his stomach. Strangely, he could decipher his feelings from her feelings. He felt like a _half_. Half of his body was made of him, the other half was made up of her.

Somehow, he felt the need to comfort her. "I think she's okay."

"Yeah?" Ally said, eyes holding a small gleam she hadn't known she let enter her gaze.

The corner of his mouth tugged as he nodded.

A silence followed, but it was hardly awkward. It felt comfortable, like both of them could stand there in the quiet and never want to be shaken out of it.

He broke it anyways. "Do you have somewhere to be?"

"Um...Yeah. Yeah, I was just heading back inside." Ally pointed towards the library. "I work here."

He nodded his head and glanced around. "Would you mind if I stuck around?"

Suddenly, she wanted nothing more than that. She smiled. "Sure. Are you the reading type?"

He guffawed. "Not exactly."

She giggled and the sound was too beautiful. "I didn't think so."

He followed her inside the library. They never spoke too heavy. It was light small talk and she found that she loved his presence and he loved the way her lips verbalized certain words.

He's never quite been the dating type. He's slept with a few women here and there, but suddenly none of them compared to Ally and the way she made him feel. It almost felt supernatural - beyond human capacity.


	4. Chapter 4

**Authors Note: I am thrilled that you guys are interested and loving this fic! I was scared to post it, because I thought it was lame, but I've been proved wrong! I did receive an interesting comment on the first chapter and I did want to address it to everyone.**

**The comment was concerning Austin's behavior and that they weren't so impressed that he was a "murderer", so I want to set the record straight. **

**First of all, I totally understand where the commenter was coming from, but this is fan FICTION, hence, you make it what **_**you **_**have envisioned it to be. **

**Second of all, Austin is actually not a murderer, but I do know where I've lost people with that statement. Austin is a **_**thief**_**. Not a murderer, but he also isn't afraid to harm/kill somebody if they get in the way. In fact, his character was very much inspired from the 1975's "Robbers" music video, so I was really observing the way Matty acted in the music video because that's how I envisioned Austin's character to be. So, please, don't confuse Austin to be some psychotic killer, because although he does come across on a little of the psychotic side, he is not completely a killer. And you know, I really don't support murderers and I think writing love stories about them is not okay. If you do write stories about murderers, cool, make it what you want! But I, personally, don't fantasize about murderers. **

**Also, Austin and Dez are **_**partners**_**, not gang members, I wanted to make that clear as well. The two are a little bit rougher and reckless, but that was the basis that I created the characters to be. I found Austin being a bandit kind of made for an interesting and different plot rather than the 'he was a bad boy, she was a good girl, they found each other and fell in love' because I don't think it's really that easy, **_**especially**_** when it comes to the good girl-bad boy thing. There's going to be some surprises and a long adventure before these two fill in the gaps. **

**This has been a long Author's Note, but I wanted to address a lot of questions. Some of you were even wondering about their ages, Ally is 19 and Austin is about 22/23. I'm not sure if his age will ever really come up in the story, so I'll just give you that random fact. **

**Alright. If you haven't already skipped my note, I hope you enjoy this chapter. **

**x**

Trish flipped a pancake.

"What about Gavin?" Trish questioned, glancing to her best friend who looked at her oddly.

"What about him?" Ally questioned.

"Does he know that you've been spending time with Austin?" Trish asked, eye brows arching.

Ally sighed as she watched Trish flip two pancakes onto her plate.

"Not exactly." Ally murmured. "I want to tell him, I do. But I'm worried that when I tell him, he'll get mad. I think I already upset him last week when I told him it felt like Austin and I were one person."

Trish cleared her throat. "One person?"

Ally looked at her friend. "Yeah. It was totally weird. Sometimes I feel like we share emotions." Ally laughed shyly and shook her head, "I mean, we don't _share_ emotions, it's just that...sometimes it feels that way. When he's happy, I feel like I'm happy, too - Like I'm at peace, or something. It's strange. He's strange."

Trish avoided Ally's eyes by pouring the pancake batter into the pan. She adjusted the heat on the stove. "Do you really think you share emotions?"

Ally's face became hot. She shook her head, "No...No, I didn't...I didn't mean for it to-"

"-Ally, I'm your best friend. You can tell me whatever you need to." Trish assured her, holding her breath.

Ally swallowed a piece of pancake. "No, Trish, I don't think we share emotions. I mean, I feel like we feel the same things at the same time, you know? But we couldn't share emotions. That's scientifically impossible."

Trish stared at the bubbling pancakes. "What if you could? Share emotions, I mean."

Ally squinted as she focused on her best friend. She laughed slightly. "Trish, It was a figure of speech. I told you, I don't really think Austin and I share emotions. Maybe we just have a lot in common."

Trish nodded. "How about Gavin? Do you feel like one person with him?"

"Sometimes, I guess." Ally shrugged. "Gavin and I, we're two people, but we make each other better. That's why I love him." Ally smiled.

"You don't think your feelings for him have changed since you've met this Austin?" Trish flipped the pancake. "I mean, you talk about him a lot."

Ally shook her head. "No, of course not. I love Gavin, Trish. Austin has weirdly become a good friend. I don't know why he's at the library all the time. He's a nice guy, I like hanging out with him, but he's just a friend."

Trish nodded and flipped the pancakes onto a plate nearby. She turned off the stove and placed the pan in the sink, steam sizzled.

"You could have met him, you know." Ally said, "If you hadn't bailed on me."

"I had homework." Trish fibbed, "I guess I'll meet him another time."

Ally furrowed her eye brows together, "Why do you care so much, anyways? You're not usually this involved with my love life."

"I was curious, that's all. It's not every day my best friend meets a guy who she's sworn to share emotions with." Trish said. Ally rolled her eyes playfully.

"Are you sure that's the only reason?" Ally questioned, eyeing her best friend.

Trish cleared her throat and forced a smile. She nodded her head as Ally shrugged and continued with her pancakes.

**x**

"Don't you think it's a little odd to be stalking her?" Elliot questioned, nudging Austin's arm.

"I'm not stalking her." Austin said, "I wanted to read..." Austin looked at the pile of magazines and pulled one over, "Cosmopolitan."

"You're stalking her." Elliot deadpanned.

"I am not, now shut it." Austin said. He glanced over and saw Ally shelving some books. "Besides, she likes it when I'm here."

"Oh, great. She brings out the narcissism in you." Elliot muttered.

Austin ignored his friend. He wasn't going to get into the whole emotion thing just as he had with Dez. He knew neither of them understood, heck, he hardly understood himself.

He had his eyes on her when she turned around. Her cheeks lifted upwards and the corner of his lips quirked upwards.

"Oh, gross." Elliot moaned. "She's turned you into a puddle of goo."

"I thought I told you to shut it." Austin snapped. "Now, be on your best behavior. She's headed this way."

"Austin." Ally chimed, "You come by to read another magazine?" She held her breath so she wouldn't laugh.

Austin kicked his friend's leg. "Elliot, don't be rude."

Elliot winced. He turned to Ally and looked at her, "Oh, you're kidding. Ally?"

When she realized who it was, her eyes gleamed. "Elliot!"

Austin frowned and something burned in stomach. Jealousy.

Ally glanced at Austin oddly. Something warm swirled in the chambers of her ribcage and she had a feeling it was coming from Austin. A vibe echoed in her that he was uncomfortable. She wondered why.

"I thought you didn't know Ally." Austin said, carefully as he eyed Elliot.

"Well, I didn't think you were talking about this Ally! Ally and I go way back. Actually, only to a few months ago. We're both studying for our bachelor in English." Elliot replied as Ally nodded.

Austin arched a brow, "You're a bachelor _in English_?"

Elliot narrowed his eyes at Austin, "Yeah. I happen to be a whiz at poetry."

Austin held back his snort. Elliot was a college-poet by day, thief and drinking buddy by night.

Ally smiled at Elliot, "I didn't see you at the bonfire, did you go?"

"Hell yeah, I was there. You didn't see me, but I heard you saw this freak." Elliot nodded towards the blonde in front of him. He wondered about getting his ass kicked later, but Ally was a pretty girl and he wasn't going to show her how Austin usually pushed him around.

Ally giggled and her eyes returning to Austin's made the burning in Austin's gut go away. "You told him about me?"

"Oh, did he ever!" Elliot blurted. He cleared his throat when Austin's eyes narrowed on him coldly. "I mean, he's mentioned you a couple times. Maybe three." He tapped his fingers nervously, avoiding looking at his blonde friend. He focused on Ally. "Small world?"

"I guess so." Ally grinned. She looked over to Austin again. "I'd love to stay and talk with both of you, but I've got to get back to work."

They waved her off and it was silent as both boys watched her turn the corner into an aisle.

Abruptly, Elliot turned to Austin. "Ally _Dawson_? Are you fucking kidding me?"

"What's it to you?" Austin growled.

"What's it to me?" Elliot echoed, "You can't possibly think you can jump her bones!"

"I don't want to _jump her bones_." He wasn't about to explain his sudden unconditional love for her either. But maybe he did want to jump her bones a little bit and hold her jaw into his rough hands. Maybe he wanted to run away with her somewhere.

"Then, what the hell do you want from her?" Elliot rose a quizzical brow.

"I told you, the mark went away when I met her. I just wanted to get to know her a little bit." Austin replied, tone stale.

Elliot shook his head. "Well, you can't have her, if that's what you're implying. Look, People like us don't get people like her. We're the villains of the story, Aus. Villains don't get the girl. Besides, she's got this goody-two-shoes boyfriend."

Anything that was angering him about what Elliot said froze. He focused on his friend. "Boyfriend?"

He never thought himself to be naive. How could he possibly think that Ally could jump into his arms so easily? Of course she had someone waiting on her. Girls as beautiful as her always find their hearts trapped in somebody else's hands.

"Yes." Elliot said. "They've been going strong for a couple years now. Pretty sure those two are going to have wedding bells ringing sometime soon."

A muscle in Austin's jaw jumped. "I wouldn't be too sure."

Elliot frowned at Austin. "Austin, let it go. You have a small crush on her, but she'd never go for somebody like you. And I mean it in the nicest way. We're thieves, Austin. Practically criminals. You were _chased _out of Missouri for God's sake. You think it's a good idea to bring her into a life like that? Especially after hers is so picturesque right now? She's smart, her boyfriend is a great guy, it seems her future won't be too bad. You want to ruin that for her?"

Austin's eyes trailed over to Ally.

Her small figure creeping up onto the tips of her toes as she reached the top shelf. She plucked a book from the centre and tossed it into the cart.

Austin gave a sour look as he watched her. "No." His voice was feral growl. "But I don't have a choice."

"Austin," Elliot said, "What the hell is wrong with you? You said so yourself, ladies are nice to look at, but not to have. You made it a goddamn rule that we wouldn't get involved with anyone!"

"Then I met Ally." Austin replied, wryly. "I know what I said, Collins. But the mark disappeared when I met her and I have to know why."

"You sound like a fucking lunatic!" Elliot exclaimed, exasperated.

Austin's eyes narrowed on Ally. He suddenly felt lost and angry.

Ally suddenly turned around and looked at him confused. Austin knew she felt it, too. There was something weird between the two of them and he wasn't going to let anyone tell him that it wasn't real.

He looked back at Elliot. "Let's go."

Elliot watched Austin exit the library. He shook his head. He looked over his shoulder at Ally and gave her a polite smile. He sighed. He wondered what had gotten into Austin and there was the ever growing curiosity that it had a lot more to do with the mark that he thought was possible.

**x**

Trish stared down at her notebook, but her thoughts were elsewhere.

She hadn't told Ally about what she'd discovered yet, but it was clear that Austin and Ally were soul mates. Trish exhaled and shook her head. Soul mates weren't supposed to exist, but her best friend was proof. She was displaying everything the legend said she would.

Trish wasn't sure how Ally would react if she told her. She wondered if it was best to keep the facts to herself for now. It might even scare Ally if she knew. Not only would it freak her out, but she'd think Trish was crazy. Trish knew her best friend well and she definitely knew that Ally wouldn't be opened to something like this.

What about Gavin? What would happen to him once Ally knew about the soul mates? They'd been together for so long and maybe they're relationship did have their ups and downs, but Gavin was good to her. They were practically the picture perfect couple. He was the kind of boyfriend girls envied to have. And what would this whole thing to do him?

She suddenly wished she hadn't known anything about this, but it was too late for wishful thinking. She did know. And she would have to tell Ally, and Gavin too.

"Excuse me?"

Trish looked up and met a pair of blue eyes shielded by red bangs that swooped over his forehead. Trish arched her eye brows. "Um, yes?"

"You mind if I buy you a coffee?" he questioned, "You look a little distraught. Maybe some coffee will do the trick."

"Oh." Trish looked slightly flustered at the kind offer. "No...You don't have to do that. I just came here to study."

"You don't seem to be doing much studying." the stranger replied.

Trish inhaled, "I guess I'm thinking, too."

"I'll get you a coffee. You look like a fan of latte's." he said.

"I'm not actually. I hate coffee." Trish replied.

"How about a hot chocolate? Tea?"

Trish exhaled. "I'd love a hot chocolate. But I don't have any money to pay you back."

"You won't need to." he said, "I'm Dez, by the way. Would you mind if I accompanied you? I also have a lot on my mind."

Trish's lips tugged upwards. "Sure."

Dez smiled back at her and she watched him walk to the front. She shook her head. Company wouldn't be so bad and maybe if she couldn't bring herself to tell Ally about what was going on, she could confide in a stranger. Maybe he'd think she was crazy, but at this point, she thought she was crazy, too.

Setting a hot chocolate in front of her, Dez pulled out a chair and sat in front of her. He looked at the books she had spread out on the table.

"I don't usually do this kind of thing. I guess you're pretty special." Dez replied.

"I guess I am." Trish rolled her eyes.

"Actually," Dez began, "I just saw this."

He carefully reached forward and tugged a book out from beneath her papers. He tapped the cover of it twice with the top of his index finger and stared at her curiously, "What do you know about soul mates?"

She looked at him.

**x**

**Hopefully things start to heat up soon. It's taking a bit to get this story going, I apologize for that. Keep reading!**


	5. Chapter 5

Dez tapped his steering wheel, his thoughts spiraling in different directions.

Trish shut the book and looked over at him. "Well, that's everything I know."

He glanced at her, "Do you believe in it?"

Trish hesitated, taking a deep breath. "Yes." Before he could respond again, she asked, "Now, why did you want to know about soul mates?"

Dez ran a hand through his hair. "Well," he began, "Believe it or not, I've recently had my curiosities on the old legend. Actually, my Mom used to tell me stories about soul mates. She said she found hers once but when he found out about me, he never stayed."

"I'm sorry." Trish murmured. She frowned. "If your Mom believed in soul mates and said she found hers...How did he take off? I mean, after everything I've read, it makes it quite clear that soul mates have a different kind of connection than an ordinary human."

Dez shrugged. "I don't know."

A pregnant pause filled the car before Trish decided to speak up again. "So, that means you believe in it?"

"I don't know," Dez shook his head, "I mean - Alright, this is going to sound crazy, but I think..." he exhaled, "my best friend, I think he found his...you know, soul mate."

Trish studied him, "I'm listening."

"On Valentine's Day, he got this mark on his hand. He didn't tell me until later, but when we got to Miami, it...well, changed. Kind of like a clock, the numbers kept getting smaller. Twenty four hours later, he's head over heels for some girl named Ally." Dez explained, shaking his head.

Trish froze. "Oh my God." she muttered.

Dez looked at her, raising his eye brows. "Something wrong?"

"No...I just..." she cleared her throat. "Does your best friend happen to be...an Austin?"

Dez blinked, surprised. "Actually, yeah. How'd you know that...?"

"I just so happen to be Ally's best friend." Trish explained.

"Small world." Dez mumbled.

"Same thing happened to her. The mark appeared, counted down, and suddenly he's all she talks about." Trish explained.

"You think we should tell them?" Dez questioned.

Trish nodded. "I think we _have_ to."

**x**

"Ally!"

Ally turned to see a familiar boy running towards her. She grinned at him. "Elliot, hi."

"Hey," he smiled at her. "Um..." he cleared his throat, "How's Gavin?"

Her cheeks turned red just thinking about her boyfriend. "He's great."

Elliot nodded. "Heard you guys moved in together."

"We did, yeah." Ally smiled.

Elliot sighed and came to a stop. "Ally, look," he began as Ally frowned, stopping in front of him. "You don't...I don't think you should hang around Austin."

She blinked and shook her head. "Is there a reason?"

"Yes." Elliot said. "I look at Austin like he's my older brother, believe me, but he's just...not the kind of person you should be hanging around. I'm not either."

Ally frowned. "What are you talking about?"

Elliot sighed again, digging into his pocket. He pulled out a piece of paper and handed it to Ally. "He's a criminal, Ally."

Ally looked down to the picture in her hands. _Austin's mug shot._

"Austin, he's...reckless. And dangerous. Believe me, I wouldn't be telling you this if I didn't care about you, but I do. I care about Gavin, too. You guys are my friends and I just...I want you to stay safe and to do that, maybe you should stay away from Austin." Elliot told her.

Ally shook her head. "You just said he was like your brother...Why are you telling me this?" She handed him the paper with shaky hands.

Elliot took it. "I told you, I want you safe. Gavin, too. The only reason Austin is even here, staying with me, is because the cops chased him out of Missouri and he had no where else to go. Call him a thief, a bandit, I don't know, but he's not someone you should be spending your time with."

Ally swallowed hard.

"If he's like your brother, that means..."

He sighed. "Yes, I've gone on runs with him. I've worked with him." Elliot admitted, lowering his eyes. He looked back at her, "Stay safe, Ally."

Ally stood there, dumbfounded and afraid.

**x**

Austin laughed loudly.

"Soul mates?"

"I'm serious, Aus." Dez said, "It sounds crazy, I know that, but think about it. All the stories they told us as kids - they were all true. It's the reason you feel the way you do about Ally, how connected you feel to her, it's because she's your soul mate. The mark, how you felt when you bumped into her."

Austin pulled his cigarette away from his mouth, twiddling it between his index finger and his thumb. He didn't want it to make sense, but it did and somehow, it made him feel at peace. Ally was his. He was hers. Her boyfriend would be out of the mix in no time.

"Soul mates..." Austin tested the word on his tongue. He shook his head, "My Dad used to tell me things about soul mates, but I never...I didn't think..." he trailed off slowly, "Holy shit." he breathed.

Very carefully, the stories made sense. The way his father had spoken about his mother. The reason his father had pretty much _hated _him for killing her. As a child, the story of his mother had never made much sense, why his father rarely spoke about her and when he did, the transparent pain that nearly echoed throughout his bones.

Austin would've apologized to his father, but how do you apologize for simply being born? His Dad blamed him often for being the reason towards her death, the reason she hemorrhaged, but Austin never felt responsible. Maybe it was the coldness in him, Austin's never exactly had a warm heart.

Austin took another drag from his cigarette. "Does _she_ know?"

"Maybe." Dez shrugged.

**x**

Ally jumped when she suddenly saw a body standing before her.

She placed a palm over her chest as if the touch would calm her racing heart. Ally recognized the blonde hair and smirk in a heartbeat. She suddenly recollected what Elliot told her to do: Stay safe. Safe meant away from him.

She was suddenly nervous to look him in the eye.

She wasn't exactly sure of his past, or his crimes, but she was sure that he wasn't good news considering Elliot had explained that he'd been chased right out of Missouri. The only people who are chased out of states are straight up criminals. The bad guys. She had hoped he would never of been labeled as anything of the sort, but she wasn't sure anymore.

His attire registered in her mind: Shaggy hair, the sharp leather jacket that hung over his shoulders, the scar below his eye brow, and the pack of cigarettes she saw him swipe from his back pocket often.

She swallowed and turned away from him, focusing on the books she was stalking into the shelves.

Austin arched a brow, his smirk shadowing confusion. "Ally?"

"You shouldn't be in here." Ally muttered.

Austin frowned. "Why not?"

"Because you shouldn't be." Ally snapped.

Like something probing around in his intestines, he caught the emotion of anxiety radiating off of her. He studied her; avoidance of eye contact, rushed movements, irritation. The connection they shared didn't help either, he could practically feel her disturbance of peace as if it were his own.

He knew in an instant.

"Oh," Austin sang, smirk widening as he leaned back against the book shelf and looked at her."Elliot said something, didn't he?"

She hesitated. "He did." Her teeth were clenched.

"Did he tell you about me? He did, didn't he?" Austin queried, a mischievous glint in his eyes.

Suddenly, she didn't feel so spineless. She gripped onto the only ounce of courage she had. She dared to look him in the eye and watched his smirk lift further on his mouth.

"You lied to me." Ally hissed.

Austin exhaled in mock-sadness, "I didn't _lie_, I just didn't tell you the truth." He flashed his pearly white teeth at her. "You see, there's actually a difference. I never exactly _told you_ what my hobbies were, therefore, I didn't lie."

"Your _hobbies_!" she exclaimed.

Austin rolled his eyes. "Oh, Ally, Don't be a drama queen." He reached out and brushed a strand of hair behind her ear. He opened his mouth to say something, but Ally's slapped his hand away.

"Stay away from me." she growled.

Austin lowered his hand, cocking his head to the side as he studied her. "Do you really want that?"

"Yes!" she scowled.

He smirked. "I don't think you do. See, I think you _love_ the feelings I give you. I'll bet your boyfriend doesn't make you feel half the way I do." His smirk widened further when he saw the fire ignite in her eyes.

"Go. Away." Her demand was spoken through gritted teeth.

"Alright, Alright." Austin said, his arms lifting in mock surrender.

His jacket lifted away from his side and Ally took a peek at the knife dangling in the inside pocket. She gulped and looked back at his face.

"You know," Austin said, "I like girls with manners. Work on that."

"What did you even want from me?" she questioned, "To be my friend?" A chortle pushed out her throat, "Good luck with that."

And then it clicked.

_She didn't know. _

He kept the smirk on his face as he studied her, "I did. I do." He got closer to her. "You don't have to be afraid of me, Ally." he whispered, his voice chilling her bones. He then let out a gruff laugh, taking a step back from her.

"Alright, I'll leave now. Kiss your boy on the cheek for me, will you?" Austin smirked.

She was stunned at how much she hadn't known him at all. He had been so kind and he'd made her laugh until she snorted. Now he was _this. The bad guy._ She couldn't believe it. He had fooled her. And he'd done it so well.

She grunted in annoyance and turned back to shelving the books.

**x**

"So," Austin's voice was loud as he kicked the door shut behind him, twirling the knife on his finger tips. "Tell me why I shouldn't skin you on your kitchen table."

Elliot sighed, "Austin-"

"Humor me, Collins." Austin said, a glint in his wild eyes.

"Austin, I..." he sighed again, "She's my friend and I want her safe. She's got a bright future ahead of her and we can't, _you _can't sabotage that for her."

"What's going on?" Dez queried carefully as he stepped into the kitchen.

Austin glanced over at Dez before looking back at Elliot. "Seems we got a little messenger on our hands. Elliot here told Ally _all _about me." Austin straightened up and looked at Dez, "Now, while you're here," Austin pointed his knife in the direction of Dez, "You can enlighten me on why Ally has no idea about _us_."

"Fuck, Now what did I miss?" Elliot groaned from his seat.

**x**

Gavin sat there, baffled.

Something pulled beneath his ribcage. It was his heart and it was aching.

Trish sent him an apologetic look that he missed. His eyes were directed to the table top, only taking in what he'd heard from Trish.

He shook his head. "This doesn't make any sense."

"I know it doesn't." Trish murmured. "Do you...believe me?"

There was a silence that hung loosely in the air until Gavin met her gaze. He nodded. "Actually...I do. I wish I didn't." he said.

Trish gave him a small smile. "We'll figure this out."

"She can't be with him...Not after she told us who he is, what he does." Gavin replied. Trish nodded in agreement.

She was slightly overwhelmed with the fact that she sat in a vehicle with a criminals best friend who was, no doubt, probably in on the crimes as well, but she forced herself to forget about Austin and Dez. There was more important matters right. Like Ally's destiny, for instance.

"She doesn't know?" Gavin questioned as Trish shook her head. "We have to tell her."

"I know," Trish exhaled, "But...What do I say? How do I bring it up?"

"_We'll _tell her. It's not going to be easy, but she'll have to figure it out eventually and I don't want to lie to her." Gavin told her.

Trish smiled. "I agree."

As if it'd been planned out, Ally suddenly walked through the door.

She stopped and looked between Trish and Gavin. "Trish?" Ally said, surprised. "I didn't expect you here. Not that I'm complaining. I was actually wondering if-"

"-Ally." Gavin stopped her with a sigh.

Ally stood still. She frowned at the duo who were sitting at the kitchen table. That was when she noticed an odd tension in the air. A tingling against her spine like something wasn't quite right. "What's...up?"

"There's something you need to know," Trish said, "And it involves Austin."

Ally rolled her eyes. "I told you, I'm not interested in getting to know him anymore. Whatever he did, I don't care. I've successfully avoided him all week and I plan to continue the process of it until he disappears forever."

Gavin and Trish exchanged glances.

"It's gonna be a little more complicated than that." Gavin replied.

Ally opened her mouth to question him, but Trish jumped in. "Why don't we take a seat in the living room? We'll explain everything."

"Guys?" Ally said, voice tagged with anxiety.

"You need to hear this, Ally. You need to know." Gavin said.

Noticing the serious look on his face, Ally finally nodded. She carefully walked into the living room, almost as if she thought the floor would break beneath her feet. She lowered herself onto the couch, feeling uncertain about the events that were about to take place.

"Just take it from the start." Gavin whispered as Trish obliged.

Ally's eyes darted between the two who stood in front of her. Gavin didn't seem like himself which worried her more than what Trish was supposedly going to tell her.

She urged them to go on. "Well? What's happening?"

Trish took a deep breath. "Look, you were so concerned about the mark on your hand and I guess I felt a little bit worried about it, too-"

Ally smiled slightly. "-Trish, I'm fine now. You don't have to worry-"

Gavin sighed. "Ally, just let her talk."

Ally slowly looked away from Gavin and focused on her best friend. "Sorry." she murmured.

"Like I said, I was worried about you." she cleared her throat, "So, the night of the bonfire...I decided to look into the mark. I was curious as to what was happening to you and I wanted to find answers. So, I went into my Mom's study and I was looking through some books and I found something." Trish began.

She went on, "The mark on your hand...It wasn't a birthmark."

Ally had no idea where this was going. She only stared in confusion.

"According to the legend on soul mates, the numbers on your skin were a twenty four hour clock to when you meet your_ soul mate_." Trish explained.

"Trish, stop." Ally sighed, relaxing back into the couch.

She knew her best friend had a passion for old legends, but she had a feeling her best friend just took a turn into crazy town.

Trish ignored Ally's demand and continued.

"The book said that the clock will start a countdown twenty four hours before you and your soul mate meet. When you meet them, the countdown will stop and the clock disappears. But the thing about that is...once you meet your soul mate, it's told that you share a connection. A bond that binds the two of you as one. Like a link."

"Trish, you sound ridiculous." Ally shook her head. "Soul mates?"

"Keep going." Gavin told Trish.

Ally looked at her boyfriend incredulously. He didn't truly believe this, did he?

Gavin didn't look at Ally. He only stared at Trish, his hands dived into his pockets.

"Soul mates are told to be like two halves, when they find each other, they make a whole. According to the legend, the universe picks two certain people and they are meant for each other. Destined." Trish explained.

"When you met Austin...You said your mark disappeared and you felt...different." Trish added, carefully.

"And... you think Austin and I are..._destined_?" Ally countered, disbelief echoed in Ally's monotone voice.

Trish sighed. "I don't want to believe it, but I do. There's always been stories about the soul mates. What if they were true?" Trish asked.

Before Ally could reply, Gavin spoke up. He was staring at the floor. "You said...You felt like you shared emotions with him. That you knew him, Ally. That's exactly what the book says."

"Gavin-"

Trish interrupted, "-Ally, the mark ran out of time and coincidentally, you bumped into Austin. Then it was gone. The book described exactly that. And the emotions you've been feeling, it's called The Connection. The book explained that your feelings will reflect onto your soul mate. That's why you felt like you knew him, not like you'd seen him before, but that you knew him on a personal level."

"Well-Well, I mean...When he was around at the library, sometimes I felt like I knew what he was feeling." Ally shook her head. "Trish, You read a book of legends. A tale. A story. Soul mates don't exist. The stories my parents told me when I was young, they were made up. Fiction. Just something that was used to put me to sleep." Ally said.

"I know how crazy it sounds, but please, just think about it." Trish begged. "I mean, it just...all of it makes sense somehow."

"I don't want to think about it." Ally snapped. "You're telling me that a possible criminal could be my soul mate!" Ally laughed without humor. "Right."

"And, really, _soul mate_?" Ally guffawed, "Do you guys realize how crazy you sound?"

The room fell into silence. The only sound heard was the noisy ticking of the kitchen clock. Ally slowly looked down to her palm where the numbers had once been before she'd met Austin. To where they'd disappeared after she'd met Austin. She suddenly felt overwhelmed as she began to reminisce all the feelings that ran through her when they met.

"This doesn't make any sense." Ally whispered.

But she knew it was the exact opposite. It made _too_ _much_ sense.

"It's logic, really." Gavin said, leaning back against a piece of furniture. "You get this freaky mark, it counts down, you run into Austin, mark disappears, and you start having this supernatural emotional-whatever. It only makes sense that the reason for all of that is because he's your soul mate. You know, your _destined one._"

Ally heard the edge in his voice as he spoke the last two words. She sighed as she looked at him. "What does any of this even mean?"

"Basically, it's in some sort of design made by the universe that you and Austin end up together. It's in some all-supernatural plan of the soul mates that you and Austin have been literally made for one another. In other words, you and I are doomed." Gavin finished, his voice catering to nonchalance.

Ally sighed. "Gavin, we'll fix this. That's not going to happen. I can't...He's not my soul mate, Okay? You are. I love you and you love me, and this universe crap? You can't really believe in it, can you? I mean, it's us. We've always been meant to be." Ally told him, lacing her fingers with his.

He cracked a gentle smile, but it looked slightly saddened.

Trish took a deep breath. "I left something out earlier." Trish told Gavin who suddenly became expectant of what she had to say.

"What is it?" Ally queried.

"I met a lady after I'd found out about...everything. She's like...an expert or something on this kind of thing. Maybe we could talk to her. Figure this out." Trish took out a piece of paper and handed it to Ally. "It's her address. She knows more than I do."

Ally nodded and stood up. "Yes. Gavin, we have to talk to her. This could be our way out of this mess. Tomorrow. Tomorrow we'll find her, okay?"

Her lips grazed his cheek for a kiss before she took off into her room to start researching Ms. Suzie, the lady whom Ally believed would solve all her problems.

Gavin exhaled and looked at Trish. "She's not going to deny it forever, you know." he told her, "As much as I wish she won't, she'll eventually come to accept the truth about this."

"I know." Trish said, softly.


	6. Chapter 6

Dez looks across the curly haired brunette who flops down into the chair in front of him. Her arms are crossed and her eyes are narrowed on him, but for a reason she didn't know, Dez never quite intimidated her.

"Well," Dez inhales, "I didn't think you'd actually meet me here."

"It took some convincing." Trish admits.

He gives her a polite smile that she almost flares her nostrils at. "I'm glad you came."

She huffs loudly. "Are you?"

Dez sighed. "I know what you're thinking and I know how...uncomfortable it must make you feel, but I didn't lie to you if you never asked."

A muscle in Trish's jaw twitched, because, yeah, she never did ask him. She never _thought_ to ask: _hey, so do you happen to be a criminal?_

He continued, "You're the one who jumped into my car with your freaky book."

There was a silence. Finally, she said, "Touché."

Dez exhaled as if he'd been holding his breath. "Can we move on?"

"Move on?" she lifted her eye brows at him. "I just found out I sat in a car next to a _criminal_ and you expect to _move on?_"

"You convinced yourself to sit in front of a criminal, that's got to count for some moving on, don't it?" Dez questioned, corner of his mouth twitching upwards.

"Why am I here?" she questioned.

"I sort of wanted to talk about the Austin and Ally thing." Dez answered after a slow hesitance. Trish sighed, her narrowing eyes relaxed. "He's absolutely crazy about her."

"Well, consider checking him into a facility, because he is getting _nowhere _near Ally. She has a boyfriend whom she's deeply involved with and, honestly, I value her life very much and if you think-"

Dez rolled his eyes. "-That you'll let a criminal lay hands on her, I must be just as crazy as him?" Dez finished lazily.

"I see we're on the same page." Trish replied.

"I just - come on, Trish, they're _soul mates_. How do you expect to keep Ally away from Austin?" Dez quizzed.

"Honestly, I don't know." Trish shrugged. "But I do know that Ally isn't thrilled about this whole thing-"

"-You told her?" Dez interjected, surprised.

"Last week." Trish nodded. "Gavin, too. I actually think he accepted it better than she did. She's just...trying to pretend like it's not happening."

Dez nodded.

Trish hesitated before she cringed, telling him, "I told her about this medium, or this expert or something. She...Well, Ally wants to find her to see if she has any information on how to stop the connection."

Dez sucked in a deep breath. "Oh, Austin's not going to like that."

"I know." Trish winced.

"She can't just stay with somebody who isn't supposed to be hers, can she?" Dez questioned, "They're together, I get that, I get that! But this has to be serious business. Soul mates? You can't just push away your soul mate. It doesn't work like that. At least I don't think it does. It can't be that simple."

"It's not." Trish exhaled. "I've done more reading on it. The connection is just going to get stronger. Ally loves Gavin, she really does, but I don't even know if you can stop a connection. It's like fate's design or whatever."

"Austin's my best friend, but...maybe stopping the connection is what's best for Ally. I mean, Austin's living the fast life, he's got no time for settling down, he doesn't _want_ that life. He's not...good for her, I guess." Dez admitted timidly.

He felt guilty. Like he'd betrayed his best friend, but maybe his best friend just couldn't have the happy ending.

"I agree." Trish said, gently.

**x**

It was late.

Ally would much rather be at home right now with a blanket, but she was out of Advil and her head was killing her. A quick stop the corner store wouldn't hurt.

Just as Ally swung the door open and stepped inside, she heard a deep voice. "_The money. Give me all of it."_

It was funny how still her body stood when her bones were quivering under her skin.

Her mind was trained on the sight. Two men standing in front of the shaky cashier who struggled to get the register to open. With no masks on, Ally recognized blonde hair and leather jacket. Next to him stood a boy with hair so red it was hard to miss.

The jingle above the door gave her presence away.

She probably portrayed the look of a ghost, Ally figured. She could feel the blood rushing to her toes, every other part of her ran cold. All she saw was a gun pointing at her.

She heard the slap her purse made when it hit the floor by her feet.

Having turned to the unfortunate new guest, Austin was prepared for a threat to leave his lips but when he recognized the wide eyes and the stiff posture, he stayed silently for a moment. His finger moved away from the trigger and he lowered the barrel away from her.

_Ally._

Her presence explained the warm feeling in his gut and also the severity of emotions scrambling all over him.

"Drop the phone!" he heard Dez shout from behind and immediately turned to the cashier who immediately let the phone slip from his hand.

"Ally," she hated to hear her name ring from his lips, "Why don't you come over here?"

She didn't say no. She didn't say yes. She didn't even breath. She was sure her lips were blue from oxygen deprivation.

"Come on." Austin coaxed, holding up an arm as if she was supposed to cocoon herself beneath it.

There was no way she was going to even come near him. She'd done a graceful job at avoiding Austin overly the past couple of weeks and she wasn't interested in acknowledging him again, but he did have a gun and she was lying if she told herself she wasn't afraid of him right now.

She wondered why his criminal eyes looked so bright to her.

Maybe it was out of fear or maybe it was out of curiosity, she didn't really know, but soon her feet carried her slowly towards him.

"Thatta girl." His lips twisted into a smirk and she didn't like it one bit. In fact, it exasperated her. She would have shown him the mood she was in if it hadn't been for how hard she was shaking.

"Come close." Austin taunted, wrapping an arm around the back of her neck when she was close enough and holding her to his side tightly while his arm dangled from her shoulder.

He was guilty enough for her shaking to even regret coming here tonight. To regret even showing up in Miami. They should have gone somewhere else. He should have stayed away from here. He shouldn't have gotten involved in this city.

To shake off his thoughts, Austin sighed teasingly towards the cashier who was trembling like a cold deer. "Look, man, just pass us the money and we'll get out of here."

"Let the girl go." The man's voice was not very steady.

"Ally? No, it's okay. We're friends." Austin said, dismissively.

The man gulped as he looked between the two of them. "She doesn't look too friendly with you, if you asked me."

"Well, that's the point: I didn't ask you. Now, hand over the damn money so I can go home." Austin rolled his eyes, twirling his gun on his finger tip.

The cashier scrambled to toss the money on the counter and Dez swiftly collected it.

Ally felt disgusted.

This man had done nothing wrong and they'd just come in here and probably created a moment in his mind that he'll never forget for the rest of his life.

Was this pleasurable to Austin? Did he find joy in hurting other human beings?

"Let's get out of here!" Austin exclaimed.

His tone rang in Ally's ears like he'd completely forgotten what he'd just done to somebody. Her thoughts drifted to Elliot. She wondered if she'd been hanging about somebody who did this, too. She felt sick.

When she realized, Austin still had a grip on her as he headed for the door, she realized that Austin was probably taking her with him and that both excited and scared her. She didn't know what to be excited for, maybe just his presence. His eerie presence.

"No, Austin, you can't just..." stumbled from her mouth.

"He'll be fine, Als. Trust me." Austin told her and she flinched at the name she only ever wanted Gavin to call her.

"Trust you?" Her words quivered as he shifted out the door with her.

Austin rolled his eyes. "Oh, please. Remember, I'm still the guy whose presence you once enjoyed." He gave her a caustic grin.

"That was before I knew...anything." Ally replied.

He stopped in front of a car, opening the back door. "Get in." he told her.

She chose not to argue, because she thought about not winning and she didn't want to give him the satisfaction of feeling victorious. But as she crawled in, she realized that was exactly what he was feeling right now.

He slipped in beside her, tossing the car keys to Dez who'd jumped into the driver's side. He looked over his shoulder at Austin.

"I really get to drive?" Dez arched a suspicious eye brow.

"Yeah, yeah. I don't mind." Austin waved his hand at his friend.

Dez knew it had something to do with the small girl tucked under his arm in the back seat. Dez shrugged and turned around.

Ally felt uneasy when the car lurched into motion. She felt Austin's finger tips rubbing gently circles along her shoulder, but when she went to look at him, he was looking the other way.

"Relax." Austin told her easily, finally looking over at her. "It's not like I'm kidnapping you. I could, but I'm not."

"Because that makes me feel so much better. Thank you." Her sarcasm was spoken in a low grumble, but he still heard it and managed a smirk.

"Austin, I can't go anywhere with you. Gavin's waiting for me. I was supposed to only be gone for a couple minutes. I need to go home." Ally told Austin and even she felt silly for thinking Austin would even feel remotely bad for her.

Austin shook his head. "The boy can wait. Besides, Dez tells me that you _finally_ learned some interesting information about me."

The smirk he cast down at her told her he wasn't talking about his thieving habits. He was talking about something that she wanted to forget about.

Ally's eyes found Dez's in the rear view mirror.

"Sources!" Dez chimed quickly before resuming to focusing on the road.

She looked up at Austin, but timidly looked away from him, picking at a loose string on her sweater sleeve.

"I want to go home." Ally mumbled again.

"You will. Later." Austin chirped. "For now, I think it's nice we get to know each other."

Ally shook her head. "Austin, you don't really believe in it, do you?" she looked at him. "It's stupid. It was a stupid book."

"With a very interesting explanation." Austin replied.

When Ally felt the car stop, she glanced over to a house. Elliot's house. She figured that must be where Austin is staying. Dez got out of the car, leaving the keys in the ignition.

Ally really didn't want to be alone with Austin. It made her unnerved.

"Are we going to go inside-"

"-I like it in here. It's quiet." Austin said.

"Right." Ally inhaled.

"Does that mean you don't believe in it?" Austin questioned.

"No, I don't. It's silly." Ally replied, curtly.

"It does, doesn't it?" Austin said. Ally looked at him oddly for agreeing with her. "But then what's the explanation for this." Austin added, gently brushing his fingers up and down her arm and she felt guilty when shivers spidered up her spine but the feeling of his fingers felt like every nerve in her body was on fire.

"Austin..." Ally shifted away from him uncomfortably but his grip around her shoulders tightened, keeping her in place.

"You know you feel something, Ally." Austin said. "And it's indescribable and the only thing that's even making sense right now is this whole soul mate fiasco."

"You're not my soul mate, Gavin is." Ally retorted, crossing her arms.

"Yeah? Does he make you feel like I do?" Austin questioned, bringing his lips close to her ear. "Did you feel even half the things you felt when you met me?"

Ally's mind was scrambling and she started fidgeting.

He moved his head away from her and she relaxed, feeling like she could breathe again.

"No," Austin answered himself, "He didn't. Not even close. _I _make _you _feel alive." He jabbed his index finger into her ribcage and she squirmed in response.

"No, you don't." Ally argued, shaking her head. "You don't. You make...You make me feel like...Look, I don't know. I just want to go home."

She felt embarrassed for not be able to speak abruptly to him like he could to her, but his entire presence distracted her and he was right, she did feel things with him that she didn't feel with Gavin and quite frankly, it terrified her.

"Right, your boy is waiting up on you. Probably in his jammies and you guys are going to watch re-runs and kiss and cuddle." Austin mocked and Ally sighed.

Ally rubbed her forehead. "Austin, can you not do this? It's late and I have a headache. I just...want to go home. I don't want to be here."

"Yes, you do." Austin said. "Admit it, Ally; Avoiding me was the hardest thing you've ever had to do. Admit how dirty you feel because you have a boy, but all you can think about is me."

She wanted to hit him. That's all she wanted to do. Her teeth clenched and Austin smirked at the reaction he was getting.

"You can stop anytime, you know." Ally scowled. "Besides, it's useless thinking you can get to me when I'm not going to feel anything much longer."

"What are you talking about?"

"Trish knows somebody who's an expert on this kind of thing. I'm going to be talking to her and she's going to tell me exactly how the connection can be stopped. So, you see, I won't feel anything anymore. I won't think about you or feel uncomfortable every time you show up to make my life hell. _I'll be happy_."

Her words stung a lot and he suddenly remembered why he didn't do this love thing. If he had a choice in any of this, he would have chosen crime. He would never choose her. Never. She's the one thing that risks everything he's ever known. She's the one thing that can tear down everything he built up by hand.

A muscle in his jaw jumped as he looked out the window, sliding his tongue along his back teeth. He took his arm off of her.

Ally didn't know if she liked this silence either.

Austin shook his head and narrowed his eyes down at her. "You can't just _stop_ it."

"Apparently, I can and I will." Ally replied.

"You're telling me you hate it? You hate everything that I make you feel and you're just going to put an end to it?" Austin quizzed her.

Ally nodded her head.

"Well," Austin smirked at her dryly, "Tell me how it works out for you."

Next thing she knew Austin was jumping in the front seat and swiftly pulling out the drive way. Ally watched him through the rear view mirror and felt the tingle in her gut.

_She hurt him_.

She could feel it. She could feel his anger and something mixed with it like sadness or aggravation. She let her gaze fall down to her feet as she fidgeted them. She didn't want to feel bad, but she did.

It wasn't any sooner than that when he'd pulled up in front of the apartments. Ally looked up at the building and relaxed slightly, knowing that she could finally get out of this tight space with the boy who made her lungs burn.

He stared ahead, not sparing another glance.

"Thanks." she muttered, not sure what she was even thanking him about. He technically kidnapped her for fifteen or so minutes. She slid out of the car and she'd barely shut the door when he'd sped off, cutting another car off in the process.

She let out a breath, her cheeks puffed out and she ran fingers through her hair.

Pissing off a criminal is just as unsettling as it sounds.

Ally turned around and headed into the building. She realized she still didn't have Advil and groaned. But that was when she realized, her headache only came back when Austin was gone. She had merely forgotten about it.

She turned her head to look back to where his car had driven off and exhaled.


End file.
